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Green Mill has these delicious deep-fried coconut chicken tenders that I have a love-hate relationship with. They taste amazing, but I’m not thrilled about what I imagine the ingredients might be. Naturally, it was a matter of time before I tried to come up with my own low carb baked coconut chicken tenders.
When I used to work at Green Mill in my early college days, the coconut chicken fingers were pretty much a staple in my diet. They were such a convenient and delicious meal to grab after work, either on their own or as part of a salad. The employee discount didn’t hurt, either.
It’s been years since I’ve been back, but there are still times when I can’t get those crispy coconut crusted chicken tenders out of my head. Fortunately, my version of paleo chicken tenders is the perfect stand-in when a craving hits.
Baking these low carb coconut chicken tenders on a non-stick wire rack really makes a big difference in the result. The shredded coconut coating gets nice and crispy that way! Broiling quickly at the end helps, too.
Did I mention how quick and easy this baked coconut chicken tenders recipe is? Seriously, it’s practically the simplest way ever to make chicken. I have these on regular rotation for dinner, because they’re ready in just 30 minutes from start to finish.
I have to be completely honest with you. There are still some subtle differences between my paleo coconut chicken tenders and the ones I used to have at Green Mill. They are not as sweet, since I used unsweetened coconut flakes. You could use sweetened ones if you don’t mind the added sugar, or mix them with a little sweetener of your choice if you like. To me, the natural sweetness of the coconut flakes (with nothing added) is enough.
Of course, my baked coconut chicken tenders don’t have any flour, either. Who needs that anyway, when you have a delicious crispy coconut coating?
UPDATE: Helpful Tips to get the Coconut Chicken Tenders Coating to Stick:
- Make sure you’re dredging the chicken well in coconut flour, and shaking off any excess egg after dipping in the egg.
- When applying the coatings in step 5 of the recipe, use a dry hand (for dredging in coconut flour and rolling in coconut flakes) and a wet hand (for dipping in egg), not mixing the two.
- In step 5, it may help to separate the coconut flake mixture into batches and add a little at a time to your bowl as you run out. If you have it all in there at once, it may get wet after a few chicken pieces (due to the egg). Once that happens, the coconut flakes will clump together and no longer stick to the remaining chicken pieces.
- Make sure your coconut flake pieces are not too big (see step 3 in the recipe). Pieces that are too large will not stick well.
Baked Coconut Chicken Tenders (Low Carb, Paleo):
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| Servings | Prep Time | Cook Time |
| servings (2 tenders each) | 10 minutes | 20 minutes |
| Baked Coconut Chicken Tenders (Low Carb, Paleo) This healthy, baked coconut chicken tenders recipe needs only 6 ingredients. Naturally low carb, paleo, and gluten-free.
|
- 2 large Chicken breasts
- 1/4 cup Coconut flour
- 2 large Eggs (beaten)
- 1 cup Coconut flakes (unsweetened)
- 1/4 tsp Garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp Smoked paprika
- Sea salt
- Black pepper
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Place a nonstick wire rack onto a lined baking sheet. Spray or brush the rack with oil.
- Pound the chicken breasts to an even thickness, then cut into tenders (about 3 tenders per chicken breast). Season both side with sea salt and black pepper.
- Optional step if you have big flakes: Pour the coconut flakes into a ziploc bag and seal. Pound the bag several times to break up the flakes into smaller pieces.
- Arrange three bowls - one with beaten eggs, one with coconut flour, and one with a mixture of coconut flakes, garlic powder, smoked paprika, sea salt, and black pepper.
- Dredge each chicken tender in the coconut flour, dip in the egg shaking off the excess), and finally press/roll in the coconut flakes. Place on the wire rack.
- Bake the chicken tenders for 15-20 minutes, flipping halfway through, until firm and cooked through.
- Optional: Turn the oven to the broil setting. Broil on the top rack for about one minute, until one side is crispy. Flip the tenders over, then broil one minute on the other side.
Net carbs per serving (2 chicken tenders): 5g
| Print recipe |  Yum |
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Want more low carb, gluten-free ideas for chicken? Try these:
Sumayya says
These are calling out to me. My family likes chicken, but not so much coconut, and some can’t tolerate too much heat/spice for health reasons, so I’d have to reduce the quantities. Does the coconut flavour some through at all? (I guess the other seasoning might mask it.)
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Some coconut flavor does come through in the coconut flakes. You can more finely crush the flakes so that the spices coat them better, and add more spices to mask the coconut taste. Smoked paprika is a good one that has a lot of flavor but isn’t “hot”. Hope you like them!
Allie says
What’s in the dip in the photo?
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
They are shown with a simple dijon mustard sauce, but any dipping sauce you like will work!
Raegan C. says
This is probably a really dumb question, but instead of cutting up chicken breasts and pounding them to an equal size, could you just use regular raw chicken tenders (that come in the pack, just like chicken breasts) and not pound them or do the breasts give better flavor or something? Sounds like a great recipe!
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Yes, of course you can! Pounding does give a little extra tenderness but it works fine without this step too. The important part is you’ll want them to be similar in thickness so that they cook evenly.
Brittany says
About how many tenders is based off of the nutrition facts?
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Hi Brittany, The nutrition facts are for two tenders (recipe makes 6). I had large 6 oz chicken breasts, so each tender is about 2 oz of chicken. You can see the nutrition info is low for a whole meal, so you can easily have a few of these for dinner (or any meal). They’re pretty filling, too. Hope this helps!
Tobbe says
Thanks for a tasty looking recipe! How do you make that dijon dipping sauce? And what would you serve as a side to create a full meal out of this?
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Hi Tobbe, The dipping sauce was store bought… I wish I remembered the brand, sorry. I’m working on making my own though, too. There are lots of options for side dishes! I have tons of recipes in the archives here if you’re looking for ideas.
Toni says
No one will eat just one. Way too much saturated fat!
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Hi Toni, You can definitely eat more than just one. 🙂 I wouldn’t worry about the saturated fat, as the link between saturated fat and heart disease was disproven (source). The medium-chain fatty acids in coconut (which is where most of the fat in this recipe comes from) have actually been shown to have health benefits, like fighting infection, reducing appetite, and improving blood cholesterol levels (sources here, here, and here). I’d much rather have these over wheat breaded chicken tenders. 🙂
Lina Albelo says
Can I use whole wheat flour instead if I dont have coconut flour?
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Hi Lina, Yes, you can. Usually coconut flour and wheat flour are not interchangeable because they absorb moisture differently. But, in this recipe the flour is just used to help the egg stick, so wheat flour would also work.
Trace says
If you could think of a recipe for low carb pineapple dip that would be so amazing!
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Thanks for letting me know, Trace! I love getting requests. I’ll add that one to my list!
Angela says
Where did the garlic powder come in? I saw it in the ingredients but not the directions.
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Thanks for catching that, Angela! The garlic powder gets mixed in one of the bowls in step 4 – I updated the recipe card.
Laura says
Love this recipe! My boyfriend loves everything coconut and really likes these. The first time I made them I thought that they needed a little pizzazz, and so the 2nd time I made them I added some cayenne pepper to the coconut, garlic powder and paprika, and that made it perfect for us! Thanks for sharing this recipe!
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Thank you, Laura! Great idea to add some cayenne pepper for a kick!
Natalie says
I tried the recipe, and it tasted good….but I had issues getting the coconut to stick and they definitely didn’t turn out as crispy and golden brown as yours. What’d I do wrong?
Maya | Wholesome Yum says
Hi Natalie, I added some tips to the bottom of the post. I hope those are helpful!